In The Silence
by OutlawPrincess1
Summary: So much is said in a look, in a word, in a line, in nothing but silence. A collection of moments from the movie Descendants that tell more than is actually said, a closer examination of things unsaid, an expansion of what was said, and a theorization of what was running through the minds of different characters at different times.
1. A Momentous Occasion

Author's Note-First time writing a Descendants story. I saw the movie and watched it probably 30 times online lol. But the more I watched the more I saw a lot of little things that broke my heart or made me squeal. So I wanted to try and expand on some things I saw, giving deeper looks and explanations and theories on stuff.

So I'm going to try and take moments of silence, off comments, or even a line by a character that I felt said so much more than just what was said and look deeper at it. I'm going to try and make the titles of the chapters relate to what the line or moments I'll look more at are. Don't know how long each chapter will be, some might be drabbles, others might be essay length or in between and things. Don't know when the chapters will be updated, probably fast at the start then trickle off as I get through a majority of the moments.

Disclaimer: I don't own Descendants or the Isle of the Lost or anything like that. Do you know how rich I'd be if I did? So nope, no ownership here.

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A Momentous Occasion

One touch. Just one touch of her hand, one look into her eyes, was all he needed for everything he'd planned to say to slip away from his thoughts. His speech, delicately written, memorized for hours on end just…gone, the second their eyes locked.

He could play it off, say that Jay, son of Jafar's, punch to the shoulder had startled him, but it would be a lie.

He reached out for Mal, daughter of Maleficent's, hand, ready to continue his speech until he got his first real look at her.

It was easy to not notice, to just look at the group of four and see nothing but the children of the land's greatest villains, to lump them together as though they were just one body. He had done just that, standing beside Audrey and the Fairy Godmother, he'd looked at them as a group. It hadn't been until he'd gone to welcome them individually that it happened.

He reached out, he touched her hand and felt a spark.

He looked up, catching her eye, and felt his heart stop.

His world stopped really, in that one moment (or hours, he wasn't sure) that he looked into her eyes. It was like everything vanished except himself and Mal, like they were the only two left in the world. He couldn't catch his breath to continue his speech even if he remembered what his speech was supposed to be. It was hard to concentrate on anything when he was staring into eyes so wide and green.

He honestly wasn't sure what had finally gotten him speaking again, whether it was the odd look coming to her own eyes, or the way he could feel Audrey staring a hole in his back, how he could feel the other three Isle Children tensing as he lingered on who could only be their leader for too long. Whatever it was that finally jarred him out of his stupor…he almost wanted to banish them for it.

He would have much rather stared into Mal's eyes for hours more than continue his speech.

But it would be poor form to ignore the other two Isle Children, a King, even a future one, could not be so rude.

He continued on, finally shaking her hand instead of holding it, "This is a momentous occasion," and forced himself to move on.

His hand felt cold even as he offered it to Carlos, son of Cruella de Vil, and Evie, daughter of the Evil Queen.

He tried, hard, very hard, to look at the others, to focus on them, but something kept pulling his gaze back to Mal.

Her snark alone, what would have likely insulted others, just made him smile and laugh, it was refreshing in a way.

"Or the day that you showed four peoples where the bathrooms are," Mal muttered as he finished his speech.

"A little bit over the top?" he smiled at her.

"A little more than a little bit," Mal teased back, a small laugh escaping her that he just couldn't help but answer with one of his own.

"Well so much for my first impression," he playfully lamented, chuckling at it, only to be rewarded with a small laugh from Mal.

It was a wonderful sound, he couldn't help but smile at it…

And then Audrey had to bring up how Mal's mother had tried to kill her parents.

Very tactless considering Audrey was a princess. He could hear it in her voice, when she had introduced him earlier. He had wanted the four to think of him as just Ben, someone they could go to or talk to or seek out if need be, not someone to be intimidated by or fawning over or impressed with, yet Audrey had insisted on his title, even going so far as to nearly squeal that he was the future king.

It hadn't been till after she'd added that part that she mentioned he was her boyfriend.

NOT something that he missed in the slightest, that she focused on how he would be the future king instead of calling him her boyfriend first. That was who he wanted to be in the eyes of whoever was his girlfriend, just BEN first, not the king or prince or future king.

Audrey seemed threatened by Mal, though he couldn't understand why.

They'd only just started their tour when he'd been forced to cut it short, having a bit to do with Audrey really. Mal had been asking questions about magic and he'd tried to play it off that they were all normal mortals, even when Mal added that they were kings and queens too. And Audrey had to jump in again, bringing up how far back their lineage went, moving his arm around her shoulders.

He'd stepped away as quickly as he could, as quickly as would be polite at least, when Doug, Dopey's son, headed down the stairs. It wasn't that he didn't want to put his arm around his girlfriend, it was just…if he wanted to, he would have put it around her himself.

And maybe a small part of him didn't want Mal to think that he and Audrey were that serious.

They weren't really, serious or close that is, there had been a divide between them recently, she was very much against his allowing the children of the villains a chance. He understood, her parents and her family's history with Maleficent would make anyone wary of the woman's daughter, but he needed support, he needed support from his girlfriend and she hadn't given it, hadn't even been willing to compromise or listen. It wasn't till he'd asked her to help greet them that she'd stopped remarking about it. With all her comments about how he was her boyfriend, he was starting to be suspicious that she'd wanted to sort of stake her claim or assert her position and status over the other four, the way she'd shot down Evie's mention of being a princess too, coming close to degrading her, helped that suspicion.

Whatever it was, he didn't like it.

But he didn't want to be rude, his mother had raised him better than that. So when Doug appeared, he'd been all too happy to step over to Doug's side and away from Audrey, using it as an excuse and an out of sorts.

It was an odd feeling that swelled in him, seeing Doug. On one hand, he was happy the man appeared when he had, it gave him an excuse to remove his arm from Audrey. On the other hand, Doug wasn't meant to be there till later and the tour was meant to be led by himself and Audrey. With Doug there, the man would take over for him, which would leave him with Audrey and away from Mal, er, from the others.

He'd made sure though, before leaving, that they knew that he would see them later.

If he happened to be looking right at Mal when he said that, well he DID hope that he would see her later, see THEM later, all of them, not just Mal, though he wouldn't be opposed to seeing just Mal if the occasion arose.

He'd tried to offer them his help, that if they needed anything to ask him.

And Audrey jumped in again.

He would have thought it was concern for his safety, that she didn't want the other four to come to him alone to protect him. He would have thought that had she not been looking directly at Mal, as he had (as he had been doing practically the entire time after he'd shaken her hand), when she said it. She was telling MAL to stay away from him and go to someone else.

Well, he would just have to find a way to see Mal (and the others) some other way then.

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Author's Note-So this is just the first chapter. A lot of what I write will probably be my interpretation of what was going through the character's head at that moment based on facial expression and fairytale mentality and stuff. So some things might seem a little out there or a reach at times, but I'm trying to picture what the characters would think based on their parents being fairytale characters and how they'd be raised and stories of other fairytales and things.

One thing to keep in mind, I haven't read Isle of the Lost yet (want to, but haven't had time to). So if I get something wrong that was mentioned in the book or something, just let me know and I'll try and change it or fit it into the narrative ;)

Also, the chapters won't be in any particular order in terms of following the sequence of the movie. So we might get the coronation next and then back track to Ben and Mal's first date or things like that. No real order, just random thoughts.


	2. I Would Miss Him Too Much

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

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I Would Miss Him Too Much

He almost hadn't believed it, that his mother, Cruella de Vil, wanted him to stay on the Isle, to not go to Auradon, because she'd actually _miss him_.

He should have known it wasn't the case. But he'd hoped though, he really had. He'd been so shocked to hear her say she'd miss him, he'd actually had to ask her if she really would.

She would, she said she would.

But not because of anything meaningful. It wasn't that she'd miss his presence, that she'd miss her son, that he'd been at her side for years and years, since the day he'd been born, that she'd be sad to be without him. She wouldn't miss him because he was her son. She wouldn't miss him because he was going to a land she couldn't get to and she may never see him again and it broke her heart to think that. She wouldn't miss him because she cared at all.

No, she'd miss him because he was the one that touched up her roots, that fluffed her furs, that scraped the bunions off her feet.

She would miss her little servant, not her _son_.

Was that really all he was good for to his mother? Someone to do her bidding? Well, that was the way it was for almost all of them anyway, why should he be different? His mother was only going to miss him for the sheer fact that SHE would have to do all that herself now. She wouldn't be waited on by him, she wouldn't have him doing things for her.

Looking at Jay, at Evie, even at Mal, it proved they were in the same boat.

Jay's father didn't want him to go merely because he relied on Jay to steal things to fill the shelves in his shop. Jafar pushed his son to steal, having to resort to the thing he had once seen as being such a debasing thing in Aladdin, something he'd ridiculed the "street rat" for decades ago his son now did just to survive the Isle. What he'd once seen as so lowly he was encouraging his son to do, no forcing him to. The shop was what supported him and Jay, if Jay wanted food he had to steal. His father didn't care that his son could get into trouble, that he could be targeted by other villains he stole from, be cornered and punished for stealing things. If he was caught, he clearly hadn't been good enough at stealing, he was sure that was something Jafar had used to tear Jay down, just like Maleficent did Mal. No, Jafar didn't care his son would be away from him for the first time in 16 years either, that his son would be in another land, he just cared that there would be no one to fill his shelves.

Evie, she was excited to go, her mother wasn't forbidding it, which was something. But even then, her mother was SO concerned with how Evie looked when she left, how she represented the two of them. She said Evie had a unibrow, she didn't, she was beautiful, but her mother held her to such high standards that Evie always felt like she wasn't pretty enough, not for herself, not for her mother, not for a future husband. The Queen was pushing Evie to find a boy, a rich prince, not even to find _love_ but to find money. She wanted her daughter to be a queen, didn't even care if her husband would be as bad a villain as they were within the hero's standards, just that he was rich. The man might not even love Evie at all for more than her looks and the Evil Queen was telling her daughter it was right and ok and what she wanted. She wouldn't even miss Evie either, she would just be concerned that Evie found a rich man, maybe even one with enough power and sway to get her off the Isle in the end.

It said a lot that the Queen gave Evie the same box she had once tried to place Snow White's heart in.

It said more that when the Queen asked who the fairest in the land was, that she rejected Evie's excited squeal that she herself was the fairest in order for her daughter to call her mother the fairest instead. Evie's face had fallen so quickly at the rejection, at the notion that her mother didn't see her as beautiful or the fairest. Her mother only cared that SHE was the fairest, above even her daughter, and they ALL knew what led to someone else being the fairest. If the Queen could do that to her step-daughter, what would she do to Evie if she was ever the fairest?

Mal, he was sure, had it even worse than all of them. Maleficent only cared about Mal if she was being JUST like her, if she was living up to her evil expectations. Mal was never good enough for her mother no matter how much she tried. And this? This was going to be an enormous weight on Mal, to prove herself, for ALL of them to prove themselves.

But the difference was, their mothers and father hadn't come right out and said that that they would _miss_ their child solely for the fact of what they did for them instead of because it was their child.

They were all going to be sent to a world filled with heroes, filled with the descendants of those that their parents had wronged.

They were going to be surrounded by their parents' enemies.

And their parents didn't even care.

Wouldn't care so long as it didn't affect the mission.

They only cared about what their children could do for them, get them off the Isle.

Why had he expected anything other than that?

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Author's Note-I really felt bad for Carlos when Cruella said she'd miss him and that was why he couldn't go. His "really mom?" sounded so genuinely shocked that she would even admit she _would_ miss him, sounded so hopeful that she would miss him for the right reasons, and his expression and tone when she shot it down as being just because he did her roots and fluffed her furs broke my heart. I feel like he would hope his mother would miss him because she loved him, because he was her son and never far from her side, and then to find out it wasn't that at all hurt him. I wanted to touch on that here with a little more look at his thoughts on what the other parents said too.

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 **CammieBishop** -I did catch it! It made me smile so much, and we're definitely going to see a chapter about what Ben's thinking during Mal's speech and on the date too.

 **CrystalBud** -Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far.

 **bookworm563** -Thanks! I hope you liked this chapter!

 **guest** -I'm glad you like it!

 **MFM** -Thank you! That helps me very much, I have a chapter planned that involves mentions of dreams, I'll be sure to add that in! Thanks!

 **Guest** -Thank you! I tried to get as close as I could to what Ben might be thinking.


	3. Some Serious Sunscreen

Some Serious Sunscreen

"I'm going to need some serious sunscreen," Mal said before she and Evie closed the curtains in their hideous rooms to dim the light around them, to block the more powerful rays of the sun from seeping into their dorm.

They were pale, all of them, even Jay was paler than most would be. Why wouldn't they be though? They'd been left on an Island that was surrounded by a magical barrier to keep them all in. The barrier had a dark hue to it, it distorted the light, made it feel like there was a perpetual storm brewing above them, a constant cloud hiding the sun. Everything was shaded there, everything was more...different levels and versions of darkness.

She had never seen the sun before. Not once in 16 years had she seen the sun unobscured by the barrier. She had never seen pure daylight, none of them had.

They knew the sun was there, knew it existed, knew that it could burn skin and darken it, they learned about that, but none of them had ever expected to be in the sunlight before, ever. They had thought they would spend the rest of their lives on the Isle, forgotten by the people of Auradon, condemned to a punishment for something their parents had done before they'd even been born.

Yet there they were, in the daylight, in the sun.

They were going to burn, all of them, if they weren't careful.

16 years of no direct sunlight, and now to be exposed to it?

They would have to take precautions, their skin wasn't used to it.

THEY weren't used to it.

They weren't used to the light, in more ways than one.

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Author's Note-Such a little throw away line, but coupled with the fact that they closed the curtains to dim the room really struck me. Looking at the Isle, it's surrounded by a sort of cloudy haze. They have never left the Isle before. They have NEVER seen the sun or been exposed to true sunlight before. How sad and heartbreaking right?

Looking closely, Mal IS very pale, as is Evie and Carlos and even Jay isn't quite as dark.

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 **bookworm563** -I'm glad you liked it, that part with Carlos, the sweet little guy he is, just broke my heart.


	4. Raw Talent

Raw Talent

He was fast on the Tourney field, one of the few that hadn't gotten hit at all in the Kill Zone. He was quick, his reflexes fast. He forced his way across the field with a power that the other boys couldn't muster, a strength and willingness to shove his way through that the polite princes would never do. The coach called it raw talent.

It wasn't true.

He'd never even heard of Tourney before the Fairy Godmother mentioned it, neither had Carlos. They hadn't had time to ask about it, to look at a rule book as the coach brought up. He really had _no_ idea at all what he was doing. He'd seen Ben knock one of the players in yellow on his back and gone with it. He'd just knocked everyone off as best he could, trying to get the ball from one end of the field to the other, as he guessed was the point.

It wasn't raw talent he displayed, it was _reflex_.

You HAD to be fast on the Isle, you had to be quick, you had to have sharp reflexes and fast reactions or you were going to get seriously injured, or worse.

You had to duck out of flying objects, you had to shove your way through fights, you had to be able to smack someone with a plank or a crowbar to get away from those that meant to hurt you. His father was a genie by way of a wish, HE might have genie powers for all he knew, but there was no magic on the Isle. He couldn't poof his friends and himself away from danger or threat, as much as he wanted to at times, he had no magic. And when you didn't have a magical way to protect yourself, you had to find other ways out of danger. His father being who he was, the protection being the Son of Jafar gave him only went so far and sometimes it just made him even more of a target, people wanting to get back as his father through him.

You had to be able to fight, you couldn't afford to be scared or timid. You _had_ to shove through people, you couldn't show weakness, you couldn't let them get you on your back. That was how you got hurt, that was how you were made a target. If you let someone else get the best of you, even _once_ , that was it, you'd be seen as an easy target and more people than you could handle would go after you. You couldn't let anyone get the better of you or your life was as good as over.

HE couldn't afford to let it happen.

He was the oldest of the four of them by just a month, despite Mal being their unofficial leader, he was the eldest and he looked at the other three as his sisters and brother he never had. Despite his father's mantra of "There is no team in I" he couldn't help but want to look after the others, they were the only ones that really knew what it was like to grow up how he had, had seen him and his father first hand. He couldn't afford to be weak, none of them could.

You had to dodge and jump and duck and roll and avoid the chaos around you. You had to be aware and focused, had to be on your guard at ALL times, always expect a trap or a fight or a danger around every corner, you had to be able to use everything to your advantage to survive on the Isle.

No, it wasn't raw talent.

It was a lifetime of fighting just to survive.

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Author's Note-Seeing Jay's moves on the Tourney field reminded me of Rotten to the Core, how he was flipping around everywhere, swinging around and shoving through people. The coach's comment about it being raw talent just made me think it's not talent, it's his entire life having to fight and push through people that made him the "tough guy" the coach needed on the field.

I don't know if Jay is actually the oldest of the four, he struck me as being older than the others in the movie, but if that's mentioned in the book to be untrue just let me know and I'll change that line.

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 **CadetAnnie4Jesus** -You're reading my mind, there's going to be an Evie POV that relates to Doug next ;)

 **Awesomest Guest** -Oh I HAVE to do the kitchen moment! I might sort of do all 4 POVs in one chapter though, but we'll definite hit that one very soon.

 **GUEST** -I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far! I can say we'll have a thought back to a Big Sister Mal moment, maybe not a flashback, but a character will definitely think of some protective things Mal has done.

 **MFM** -That was one of my favorite moments to try and work out, Ben at the lake after the spell washes off. We'll see it very soon.

 **Guest** -I'm very happy you like the story! Thank you!

 **Marshmallow123** -We'll so see Ben at the lake post-spell washing, I enjoyed thinking on that moment. I think he might have heard her singing, but been a little too focused on trying to work out his feelings and what happened to him to really pay attention.

 **SecretSkrill** -I'm very happy that you find the chapters insightful! I just felt like there was SO much left unsaid and left up for interpretation just from the expressions and ways characters looked or mentioned something, I couldn't not try and give it a go to see if I might be close to what they might be thinking.

 **Umbra Drachen** -It was definitely sad in a very subtle way. First viewing you don't really notice much beyond the moments you're really meant to, like Lonnie and the revelations she brings out in the kitchen, but the more I watched the more there was to see in other moments too. I can't wait to look more at them. I'm glad you like the story!

 **Slayer1002** -We'll be getting Evie in the very next chapter, I'm glad you like the chapters!


	5. You Were Pretty Great In There

You Were Pretty Great In There

Evie couldn't help but smile as she sat beside Doug, Dopey's son, on a small picnic table out in the courtyard of Auradon Prep, having just shown him her last Chemistry test, one that she'd gotten a B Plus on! And all on her own too! She was SO excited about it, and she just had to share it with Doug. She wouldn't have even gotten a chance to take the test and prove herself if he hadn't stood up for her.

"You were pretty great in there," she beamed at him.

"So were you," he replied almost on instinct.

She shook her head ever so slightly to herself at that, he didn't understand at all what she was trying to say, trying to express, did he?

She meant it as a compliment, yes, he HAD been very brave to stand up for her, to stand up against the teacher, he was like one of those knights her mother used to tell her about, rescuing princesses to whisk them off as their new queens, though Doug wasn't exactly a king, she knew he was a Lord of some sort, Snow White had made all her Dwarves nobility for their help and support.

But she found that she didn't really care about that, about his title. She didn't care if he wasn't classically handsome or if he wasn't as rich as Chad. He made her feel so smart, and beautiful, just with the way he looked at her when she first arrived. After having just had her mother critique her appearance, her eyebrows specifically, having just had Audrey reduce her status as a princess to nonexistent, having just had Ben not even bat an eye at her, Doug's reaction had made her heart race, that SHE had had that effect on someone.

That wasn't what she was talking about here though, he was truly a great man, and what he had done in there was something she treasured and appreciated.

Because it just DIDN'T happen.

Not to them, not to her and the others, none of the children from the Isle really.

On the Isle, it was fend for yourself, never trust someone else, always expect them to turn their backs on you, never ever turn your back on them or they would stab you there. If you got caught, automatically expect the people with you to start pointing fingers and sell you out. That was how it worked with villains, the people around you were with were the ones that usually betrayed you. She couldn't even count how long it took the four of them to actually manage a trust and friendship despite how they'd been raised, to finally believe the other three wouldn't just sell them out like every other villain.

She had been taught that princes were meant to be noble, it was why she'd trusted Chad with telling him of her Magic Mirror.

He'd betrayed her, she should have seen it coming.

But Doug?

Doug had stuck up for her.

She should have expected THAT though. He had admitted to stalking her at the bleachers when she'd been there with Chad, he HAD to have heard her talk about the mirror. And yet HE hadn't been the one to turn it over to the teacher, but Chad had. Doug had defended her.

It had been one reason why she'd tried to talk and explain herself to the teacher despite Doug telling her, repeatedly, not to help. She hadn't expected, even then, that he would actually DEFEND her and HELP her. It wasn't something she was used to, having someone else want to help her, want to stick up for her and defend her and trust her. She expected it from Mal, Carlos, and Jay, they had built up their trust, they'd had to on the Isle. Their friendship, their bonds, were probably the only thing that helped them all survive life there, sticking together.

The idea that a hero's child, that a child of one of the people close to Snow White, a person her mother had cursed, would help her was so far beyond her that she'd tried to explain herself to the teacher even with Doug helping her. She really hadn't thought he would help, she thought she would have to get herself out of this mess, like she had a few times on the Isle.

Trusting someone else to come to her defense that wasn't Mal, Carlos, or Jay was new.

But it wasn't necessarily bad either, she was learning, she was starting to trust Doug, something she never thought she'd do ever. She thought she'd be on the Isle for the rest of her life, constantly looking over her shoulder and questioning the motives of others around her. Here? Here she might just have found her own knight in shining armor, or, well, dwarf in cute bowtie.

Doug had proven her mother wrong in her teachings. The Princes weren't always charming, and the commoners weren't always worthless.

Doug was worth thousands of Chads to her.

He really was just _great_.

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Author's Note-At first I thought it was funny and cute how Evie kept trying to talk before the Chemistry test, even with Doug arguing in her defense. And then, right in the middle of watching it for the 5th time, I was like maybe she thought she HAD to defend herself first, maybe she really didn't expect _anyone_ to want to help her, the child of a villain. And even when Doug WAS helping her, it was just so foreign to her that she kept trying to argue for herself till she realized he actually WAS trying to HELP her instead of get her into more trouble. That's just an interpretation though, she might just be an adorkable little cinnamon roll but I thought it might be another way to take that scene.

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 **CammieBishop** -I'm glad you're enjoying the chapters. Oh I SO noticed that part! I'll be touching on that in a chapter. I don't think her mother ever told her that she was proud of her though, which is very sad.

 **Guest** -Thank you!

 **Lele1602** -I'm glad you liked it! I'm very much looking forward to the moments in Mal and Ben's relationship too.

 **Guest** -I know the 3 were 16 and (I think) Carlos is 14(?), I meant Jay being older as more of a "by a few months" sort of thing, like he's the oldest by a month or two despite them all being around 16. I'll go back and edit that line to make that clearer though, thanks!

 **holly** -I'm glad you liked it, I can't wait for those chapters too.

 **AwesomeWriter2013** -I have a very large soft spot for Carlos too, he was just adorable in the movie.

 **Umbra Drachen** -Oh we'll definitely see the meeting Dude moment.

 **Guest Star** -Thank you! I have another moment that made me really look at how Cruella raised Carlos and her "care" for him in a later chapter, one where the kids ponder the "even villains love their kids" remark. I'm glad you liked the last chapter too, the way he was on the field just reminded me SO much of how he was like on the Isle and it seemed like his life and skills there just sort of carried over, which made me think it was less talent and more a lifetime of reflex.


	6. Even Villains Love Their Kids

Even Villains Love Their Kids

Silence.

All four children were silent, completely quiet at what Lonnie had just uttered. For as different as the Isle was to Auradon, Lonnie had still assumed that even villains loved their children.

And none of them could agree. None of them could say a word about it. They couldn't agree and go "of course," they couldn't defend their parents "in their own way," they couldn't say a single thing.

Being there, being confronted with so many happy and well adjusted kids, hearing about how the heroic parents were like to their kids, what COULD they say?

It was all too clear to each of them that no, their parents, the villains, did not love their children.

They'd always known it, deep down, they'd known, but they'd hoped. Foolishly they had hoped that they were wrong. They'd tried to play it off, all the hard comments and neglect, as that was just the way parents were. How were they supposed to know what parents were meant to be like when ALL they had as an example was their own? Hearing Lonnie talk, hearing the other children speak of their parents, it was just hitting them now the harsh reality of their lives.

Evie looked down at the cookie mix, not really seeing it. All she ever heard from her mother was critiques about her looks, how if she wasn't pretty enough she wouldn't be able to find a husband. Even when she tried, even when she put the most effort she could into her looks, it was never good enough. Her mother was constantly criticizing her, her choices for clothing, how she styled her hair, her make up, every little detail about how she looked wasn't good enough. She heard Jane speaking of her mother, the words echoing in her head, how a boy who couldn't love what was on the inside wasn't worth it. Her entire value, all her self-worth rested on her appearance, because of her mother. Her mother would never call her beautiful in a way that really MEANT something, she would always call her pretty in relation to herself. If she looked stunning, it was because she came from the Evil Queen, if she was beautiful it was because she was the woman's daughter and she taught her everything. She was never pretty in her own right, just…the poisoned apple falling close to the tree.

Her mother had never called her beautiful and meant it, had never cared if she was happy or if she was smart.

That wasn't love.

Jay looked down at the ground at Lonnie's words, his hand absently rubbing his arm as he half hugged himself. He couldn't recall the last time his father had hugged him, HAD he ever hugged him? He had never heard his father actually be proud of him, ever indicate he loved him as something more than a person that could get him items for his shop. If he had a good day, it was almost like his father was proud, but it was more proud of the items he snagged than the fact he had snagged them. If he had a bad day, and came home with barely an item or two, his father hardly looked at him. He would come home with bruises sometimes, trying to get an item, maybe got caught in the middle. No one kissed his injuries, bound them, told him it would be ok, he got nothing save a "do better next time." There was no compassion from his father, he didn't want him to be happy hanging out with the other three. His father firmly believed everyone should only look out for themselves, after all there is no team in I.

So if his father believed someone should only care about themselves, that had to mean his own father didn't care about his son, just himself.

That wasn't love.

Carlos swallowed hard, focusing on Dude the Dog for a moment, just thinking about all the lies his mother had told him about dogs in general. For a woman that had been so obsessed with them, with making fur coats out of them, going so far as to keep a squeaky dog toy on her shoulder as though it were a real dog, she had a strange way of explaining to him why she wanted them so badly all the while telling him to stay away from them. She lied, she lied as a way to control him, to use his fear as a way to get him to do what she wanted. She didn't want him to go to Auradon, and reminded him there were dogs there as a way to do it, to keep him close. She had made him so terrified of dogs, because she was selfish too. She wanted dogs, she wanted their fur, she didn't want HIM to have a dog, because _she_ wanted them. But she didn't even care about his fears. SHE had made him petrified of dogs, all he knew about them came from her, but not once could he recall her actually comforting him from a nightmare about them or reassuring him he was safe from them, that she would protect him.

The last thing his mother had said as he was leaving was to bring back a dog, completely disregarding his (then) severe phobia of them.

That wasn't love.

Mal's grip on the mixing spoon tightened as she looked away from Lonnie, just KNOWING there would soon be pity in the girl's eyes. Her mother was the worst villain in the land, that was no secret, she was also the worst to her, harder on her than any of the other parents. Maleficent had a way of making her feel so inferior, so desperate to prove herself, just wanting her mother to tell her she was _proud_ of her, just ONCE. In 16 years she had never heard her mother say she was proud, she had never heard her mother tell her she loved her. Her mother didn't get her out of trouble, her mother didn't make her food or cookies or make her laugh when she was feeling sad. More often than not, her mother was the one that made her sad in the first place. Her mother didn't care about her unless she was being exactly like her mother, but she wasn't her mother, she was just Mal. She had sacrificed so much of herself in trying to be just like her mother, she wasn't even sure who she was anymore. Worse yet, she was sure her mother would be happy about that, to know her daughter didn't know how to just be herself she was so deeply set in trying to emulate her mother. No, her mother didn't make her any cookies, she never hugged her, never complimented her or comforted her. When everyone was leaving, the other parents called out something, just needing to get one more word to their kids, all gathering outside the doors to wave them off. Her mother had remained on the balcony, silent but watching, looking down at her, not another word, not another glance spared to her daughter as she left.

Her mother had thrown her into the lion pit to be surrounded by the children of all their enemies without a second thought because it would benefit HER.

That wasn't love.

"How awful," Lonnie breathed, seeming to realize exactly what they were admitting in their silence.

No, villains did not love their children.

*(*)*

Author's Note-That part broke my heart to watch in the movie. Like that was a powerful, powerful silence :'(

*(*)*

 **ML143** -Thank you! Urg, Chad, I wanted to smack him more than once watching the movie.

 **PotterPriorlover** -I'm glad you like it! I'm definitely going to try and look at a lot of different moments and perspectives as I go.

 **Umbra Drachen** -No worries there, I've got plans for all three moments.

 **white tiger freak** -We'll definitely get the date scene, quite a few moments from that that I want to look closer at. We might get a few chapters worth out of just that moment.

 **Kifo Entiegon** -I am very much looking forward to the chapters of the kids just after the cement their plan to get the wand, their expressions and the things they look at are just too good to pass up. And we'll get Dude and finding out they're going to Auradon too.


	7. Evil Like Me

Evil Like Me

She flinched.

Whenever her mother turned to her too quickly, whenever she raised her hands too fast, whenever she pointed her staff at her, she flinched.

She couldn't help it.

She couldn't help jump back when her mother moved her foot to cross her legs just after mentioning how she fought with her mother when she thought she was mature enough, despite the fact there was enough room to know her mother wouldn't kick her on accident. She couldn't help but gasp and jerk when her mother pinged her head, about to tell her what she said in the past, expecting something much more painful to come from a hand moving towards her head. She couldn't help but try to back away when her mother had turned her staff towards her after asking her if she'd rather be good at being bad. She couldn't help but flinch and close her eyes when her mother's staff thumped against the steps of her display when she told her to take her place.

There may not be magic on the Isle, but that didn't mean their parents were helpless or powerless. For someone as small as Maleficent was, for someone that relied on her magic as much as the woman did, she still ruled the Isle with an iron fist.

An iron fist indeed.

And a wooden staff.

Really though, her mother had cursed an entire kingdom and a baby, originally intending for the baby to DIE.

Jafar had tried to usurp a kingdom from a Sultan and had abused numerous people in his quest for power.

The Evil Queen had been willing to have the heart of a young girl carved out.

Cruella wanted to drown 101 puppies and skin them into a fur coat.

What did people truly expect they would be like raising _children_? Just because the magic was gone, it didn't erase the evil and darkness in their hearts.

And just because the magic they used to punish others was gone, didn't mean there weren't other ways to punish their children.

*(*)*

Author's Note-So not quite a real relation or Mal's thoughts on the song itself, but this hit me when I was actually watching the song with my mother. She's a big KC fan and I told her she had a solo and she wanted to watch just that part. She actually asked me "why does that purple girl keep flinching back?" And I was like heartbreak central. Mal DOES flinch back a lot during that song. She shuffles back, she flinches, she jerks back like a reflex at different times. I could see her controlling herself more around her friends or others watching, putting on a front of not being scared of her mother, but when it's just her and her mother her real reactions come out.

I didn't want to get too into why she flinches here. Because I can't really say nor would I want to go too in depth to abuse and things like that. The movie made the villains sort of comic, that they're all suffering on the Isle, but the Isle is a prison for the WORST villains and criminals, some were even brought back from death to suffer there in a fate worse than death (to be powerless and without magic and so on) and that cannot make ANYONE suffering that very happy or leave them with much compassion. They are villains, they've all done some very cruel and despicable things in their respective stories. I can't see them being as comic or soft as they're portrayed just from having children.

*(*)*

 **AwesomeWriter2013** -I have a chapter planned for that moment with Jay and Carlos, I really enjoyed their friendship in the movie so we have a few coming for them too.

 **Guest** -I'm glad you like it! I can say I have at least 2 more Descendants stories planned beyond the ones I've already got up. I hope you enjoy them too.

 **Lele1602** -That scene just broke my heart, and trying to imagine what was going through their heads during it nearly killed me. They're way too young to feel so unloved.

 **sasuhina gal** -I'm glad you like them!

 **ML143** -I can see Chad as being sort of like that, I could equally see Cinderella raising him without (long lasting or harsh) punishments or forcing him to do chores like she was, possibly even spoiling him a little to make up for her own childhood, which could turn him into how he was in the movie. But I agree, he could also be like the first example. My cousin's girlfriend was like that, she was so sweet, but people made fun of her so she tried to change everything about her and act more like the "popular" girls and just turned into someone that was so cruel as a result :( Audrey, I feel like if she was less concerned with status and looks she'd have been an interesting character. I sort of ship Jay with Lonnie more than Audrey as a result, at least Lonnie felt sympathy for the kids and was open to them from the start.

 **Guest(2)** -I definitely plan to do a Doug POV for seeing Evie, he was adorable during that moment.

 **blue candlelight 13** -Oh we'll SO see Chad's insults during the Family day, Jay's POV will be included in it too.

 **torixxcarterr** -I love Carlos and Dude, I actually thought Dude's name was Duke till I looked it up, I thought Duke might have been a bit more fitting with the kings and queens and princesses and all everywhere, but either way that was an adorable puppy and Carlos is so sweet taking care of it.

 **shadowrider97** -Thank you!


	8. How Long Does She Think It's Gonna Last?

How Long Does She Think That's Gonna Last?

It was a valid question, but not in the way Audrey meant it, the four from the Isle were sure.

How long HAD they thought all of this was going to last?

They were all kicking themselves as they sat at the picnic table outside the school, feeling worse about themselves than they ever had, even on the Isle. Because on the Isle they would have expected this. They would have expected everyone around them to turn on them for one mistake, not even a mistake to just turn on them for no reason. But here in Auradon? They hadn't been expecting it there, not in the middle of the heroes, not in the kingdom of the Queen that was famous for giving a brute and a beast a second chance.

They had let their guard down, they had started to think they'd each found a place there, something to make them happy. They had started to think they were being accepted. They started to be happy.

So _of course_ this would happen.

Of course the people around them would turn on them without a second thought. It happened all the time on the Isle, it especially happened with their parents. Every compliment given to them, every scrap of affection or compassion or love was always coupled with some sort of disappointment, some sort of critique, some underhanded way to give them hope just to cut them down moments later. Their parents were pros at that, at making them feel a single moment of happiness and pride and warmth before the rug was pulled out from under them and they were left with nothing but hurt and disappointment and self-loathing.

And that was just it, wasn't it?

They expected it on the Isle, they were ready for it from their parents, from every other person around them to do something sinister like that. They expected to be built up by the people that should care for them solely for the fact that it would hurt them twice as much to be shattered. They expected to be used and abused by their parents.

They hadn't expected it in Auradon as well, not from the heroes, not from the "good" ones.

They hadn't expected to find a place among the other children, whether on the Tourney field or with animals or in school or in doing hair. They hadn't expected acceptance, so when it happened, when it SEEMED to happen, they were cautious to accept it. Not enough though, because they HAD accepted it eventually.

They had JUST started to get used to being around the other students, to the hope that they might not always be seen as villains and just be themselves. They had just started to think that they might be able to grow there, that they were being built up by the goodness around them.

And then even good cut them down in an instant, leaving the four of them sitting there, silent, deep in thought, staring at nothing in particular as they each battled their own demons that Chad's words had brought out. They knew that Audrey was cautious of them, especially of Mal, especially after Ben started to date her. They knew the others were cautious too, but they honestly thought the others had gotten over it by now, they hadn't given any of the children a reason to think they were truly evil. They had thought the others were accepting them, and they'd been wrong.

They'd been _so wrong_.

And it had been proven not just in the halls of the school, but in front of EVERY royal family that had attended Family Day, in front of the King and Queen themselves.

And when they did what they always did, resorted to protecting themselves from an attack by others, they were ostracized further for it.

They were being treated like pariah now, outcasts, and...villains.

It hurt, it hurt so much more than anything their parents could do or say to them, broke them all in ways they hadn't thought possible if their parents hadn't managed to do it yet. It hurt more because they had started to open up to others, _they_ let them in, and all it got them was hurt and betrayal. It was all their faults for trusting the children of the heroes, and now they had to deal with their own weaknesses.

It shouldn't hurt, it really shouldn't, they were used to the abuse and distrust.

But that was on the Isle, not Auradon.

Auradon was supposed to be different, but was it really? Had they just exchanged one prison for another? One form of abuse and neglect and torment for another more powerful one?

Who knew the heroes could be so villainous.

*(*)*

Author's Note-Not sure if what I was trying to say came across here. It just struck me the looks on all their faces sitting at the table after knocking out Chad, they all looked so sad and broken and hurt that I just couldn't help but think that they really hadn't expected the reaction they'd gotten at croquet. It's one thing to expect it from someone in particular, but when you AREN'T expecting it is when it hurts you most. They started to feel comfortable and drop their guard around the other kids, and then Chad happened and all it did was remind them that they would "never" be seen by anyone as other than being a villain's child.

And it hurt to think that their parents likely did exactly what the other kids did, give them a shred of light and affection and acceptance and good things, and then tear it away and shatter them with rejection.

*(*)*

 **blue candlelight 13** -I did notice how often they grabbed as much food as they could when it was in front of them, we'll see some thoughts from Mal and the boys about it in future chapters too.

 **kamilla13** -I'm suspicious of the scars they should have, I feel like they might have them, but hide them well, most of their clothing covered a lot of their bodies. And then when they got to Auradon and had magic, I could see Mal using it to hide more of them too, which is sad. I feel like their position as top dog could be through hard work or a general fear by the majority of their parents, sort of like go along with the kid so you don't suffer dealing with the parents, not that it seems like the parents would really care if their kids were facing adversity which is sad too.

 **Katie Emm** -Thank you! I'm definitely going to be doing a few from Audrey as well.

 **ML143** -I'm not 100% sold on pairing Jay with an established character too, I think, of the ones there to pick from, I'd prefer him with Lonnie over Audrey though. I sort of expected Lonnie to be a little more kick butt or understanding of the children, because her mother did a lot of things just to make her father proud, I sort of expected her to wonder about the kids intentions at least.

 **magiclover222** -We'll so see Ben's carriage ride definitely.

 **Guest2** -I feel like that was something the others in Auradon either forgot or didn't bother to think of. Like they expected to put the villains somewhere without magic and they'd be "powerless" to do harm, but they failed to consider there are other ways to hurt someone than through magic.

 **legend fanatic** -I've got a chapter planned for their thoughts about their plan and the things they found in Auradon that made them happy, the trophy and Dude and academics and Ben.

 **Kifo Entiegon** -Thanks for the tidbit! I'd heard the dog was a girl named Paisley, I didn't know she was Cameron's though which is cool. I do plan to do the chocolate fountain moment so we have that to look forward to.

 **Rocker Lullaby** -I have quite a few more planned for Ben's POV.

 **Umbra Drachen** -The chapter was a little later than I planned to post it, but I hope you enjoyed it!


	9. I Never Cry

I Never Cry

She never cried, she never shed a tear so long as she could remember. She was sure she'd wailed something fierce as a baby, her mother complained about the headaches and earaches and lack of sleep from her baby years enough for her to know that, at some point, she HAD cried. But she couldn't remember a time since she could actually consciously recall of her being so sad or hurt that she cried. Her mother would see it as a weakness, no doubt about it. She knew that from a very early age, hearing her mother remark about the weakness of emotion. Sadness was an emotion, tears were a sign of it, and she did NOT want to be weak, not in her mother's eyes. Her mother already saw her as weak, of course, but she had wanted to prove she was strong, and strong people never cried, strong and powerful people made OTHERS cry.

So Mal never cried.

She never let the emotion get strong enough to feel the moisture in her eyes.

She was an expert at keeping her emotions bottled up and hidden away on a shelf, if you didn't cry it meant you weren't hurting, and if you weren't hurt by something it meant you were stronger than it. And, eventually, it just stopped hurting. Eventually the sadness didn't come anymore, you were so desensitized to feeling it that it just didn't even faze you any longer. If you pushed it down enough, it wouldn't come back up, if you ignored it long enough, you could convince yourself it didn't actually hurt you, you could convince yourself you'd never felt it in the first place. It made you invincible, not crying. It was a sign of strength to not weep.

She HAD to be strong, to prove herself to her mother, to keep her friends safe from others that would use any sign of weakness against them, for herself, to survive. There were people on the Isle that tried their hardest to make you weep or cry, if you gave in, they never left you alone, they always wanted to see how quickly they could get the tears to come. Her mother was one of them, mostly to others, but still, she never wanted to be considered weak, tears were weakness manifest.

Therefore, no tears would ever come from her eyes, not even for this stupid Love Spell.

*(*)*

Author's Note-I can't see Maleficent seeing tears as anything good at all, something I think Mal would have picked up on very early and done whatever she could not to ever cry in front of her mother or cry at all. It hurts a little to think of what life had to be like where Mal, in all her years of living, can't remember a single time she actually cried on the Isle of the Lost, surrounded by nothing but hurt and evil and bad things :'(

*(*)*

 **MadiPll** -I'm glad you like it!

 **Izi Wilson** -Thank you!

 **guest** -I agree, Jay always struck me as sort of the older brother even if he wasn't the leader, like he was probably the most physically fit of the four so I could see him thinking it fell mostly to him to keep the others safe.

 **shadowrider97** -I'm glad you liked it.

 **Umbra Drachen** -Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter.

 **GrassGirl** -I have that planned for Carlos's thoughts leaving the Isle, he just like BOLTED for that car to escape his mother, and I think that tells a lot about him, so we'll see his thoughts on that in a future chapter.

 **TazzieLuv13** -That scene just hit me in the gut.

 **WolfieRed23** -I'm glad you like the stories! We'll definitely be seeing more Mal/Ben and Evie/Doug moments, not sure if we'll get Jay and Lonnie in this particular story, but there might be references to them in others I plan to write.

 **MFM** -I'm glad you enjoyed it.

 **thunder2010** -I felt it was a little rushed too, there were some very good moments of just reaction and silence that I felt would have been more impacting if they'd had even a few more seconds to be expressed. I heard that the movie wasn't meant to be a musical at first, even though I love most of the songs maybe if they'd kept the songs out there would have been more time for details like that. I'm glad you like the story so far!

 **Sand-wolf579** -After seeing how all the kids just turned on them I almost wanted the four to go through with the plan and then make the kids realize was their own fault. If you treat someone like nothing but a villain, how long did they think it would take for them to just give up and BE villains? It would have been interesting to see how the kids reacted to realizing it was THEM that drove the revenge to go through, but there's a big thing that I found really dark about the rulers and other princesses and princes (which we'll see in a chapter very soon) that makes me think even then they wouldn't admit to the role they played in it or take responsibility for their actions either, which is sad.

 **Kifo Entiegon** -The dog is ADORABLE! I actually showed a picture of her to my parents and said I want a dog like that when I move out one day, it's just so cute!

 **Miss. multifandom. pyscho** -I'm glad you like it! I saw SO many things, some that I'm probably making a bigger thing out of than was meant to be, or misinterpreting, but it's fun to explore and examine them.


	10. I'm So Sorry

I'm So Sorry

Ben looked over as he heard those three words escape Mal to see her reaching for Queen Leah, and felt his heart swell with love for the girl beside him. Mal had been so startled when she'd been hit with Leah's reaction to her, to her being Maleficent's daughter, he couldn't help but jump to her defense and try to reassure the queen. But he'd been watching Mal out of the corner of his eye as Leah grew more upset, thinking on how her daughter was raised because of Maleficent's actions. He'd seen her growing more and more upset as well, her expression growing just a little more broken and sorrowful as the woman railed on and on.

She had looked so regretful just now, so sorry, that she reached for the woman, apologizing to her for what her mother had done.

Mal was actually so affected by what Leah was saying that she was _apologizing_ to the woman for her mother's actions. She didn't have to, she didn't need to, she hadn't been the one to curse Aurora, but there she was, feeling so much regret for what happened that she felt the need to apologize to the woman for it.

He knew in his heart that he'd been right, that Mal wasn't evil, that she was truly good on the inside and if he needed any proof at all, it was this. Mal was SORRY for what happened, regret and sympathy and apology wasn't something a villain knew, it wasn't something evil did. But Mal WAS doing it. She wanted to make the woman feel better, just like a hero would.

He had only just started to smile at Mal for her actions, for her selfless apology...when Chad cut in, half shoving Mal away and telling her to get away from Leah.

This was not going to be good.

*(*)*

Author's Note-I think I watched the moment where Leah turned away and Mal reached for her to apologize like 15 times because I was so surprised Mal was going to apologize and sounded genuine about it, watching it and watching Mal's expression said so much.

*(*)*

 **flamelily274** -I definitely have a chapter planned for Belle and Beast's reactions to Mal being Ben's girlfriend. The other two I might hold off on till I've done all the in-movie moments, that's mostly what this story's a collection of, the moments on screen or implied to have happened between scenes, but I do find them interesting and I'd be willing to give them a shot once I've finished the movie-moments.

 **ML143** -It makes you wonder what else the Isle kids are desensitized to :( I agree, they'd probably not even think there was a chance it could be their own faults but just think "well they ARE the kids of villains, what else would they do?" which is sad.

 **Rumbelleforever64** -I'm glad you like it!

 **Guest(1)** -We'll definitely be seeing some more Evie and Doug moments, and a little on Ben and Doug's friendship too.

 **obsessive360** -We'll definitely get a little of Evie's POV about the way the kids all turned on them and her friendship with the others too.

 **BeautifulHalfBlood** -Thank you! I've actually got a sort of sequel-ish idea in mind for a story where certain people would get to see the Isle and what their lives were like first hand *evil grin*

 **Lucy Dragneel4life** -I have a few Jay protecting Carlos moments in mind, that's definitely one of them.

 **Guest(2)** -Thank you so much! That means a lot to me to hear. I'm really glad you're enjoying the story!

 **KC1991** -Thank you, I'm glad you like it!

 **Guest(3)** -I have something like that in mind where we see Mal sort of looking out for the others in her own way, and the thoughts people have on her doing it.

 **jabianhaterforever** -Oh we're definitely going to see Carlos meeting Dude, it was SUCH an adorable moment! I'm glad you liked the chapter.

 **PotterPriorlover** -I have a chapter for that in mind, yup, he seemed to go a little over the top in complimenting the cookie which made me curious why, so we'll see that for sure.


	11. I Gave You A Second Chance

I Gave You A Second Chance

Ben looked over at his mother for her words, feeling a war starting in his heart, pride that she was defending his idea, giving him a chance to explain his proclamation properly, but also disappointment.

"I gave you a second chance."

That was what his mother had said to his father as he began to try and put down his idea to give the children on the Isle of the Lost a chance at a normal life. A "second chance," she was talking about a _second_ _chance_ for the children and THAT was what was bothering him, disappointing him, because he was sure his mother, one of the most understanding, patient, and benevolent women he'd ever known, hadn't meant it the way it came out but he couldn't help but wonder if that was how she truly saw it, a second chance.

Why should the children be given a SECOND chance when they had never gotten a FIRST one?

The children WERE innocent!

That was what bothered him, ever since he'd learned about the Isle, it bothered him so much that he seemed to be the only one that actually THOUGHT about it. So many people in the kingdoms were relieved that all the villains were locked away where they could never harm others again, so relieved that they hardly cast a thought to the Isle after their enemies had been shipped off. They raised their children with the mere legend of what their parents endured and the reassurances that they would never have to fear those villains again.

Maybe it was different for him, HE was one of the few families that didn't have a magical enemy locked away on the Isle, he was one of the few that could look at the Isle and not think about a horror his family had endured at the hands of a villain. Sure, Gaston was locked away on the Isle, but he'd never really been an enormous threat, not like other villains were. He was more a criminal, attempting regicide than a true villain that had plotted and planned and spent their entire life seeking revenge. He had only come in at the end and attacked his father, he hadn't spent years planning and enacting a revenge, it was just a sort of last minute action. He didn't really consider Gaston a threat or a truly evil villain but more a simple criminal, which were also locked away on the Isle.

Maybe it was different for him, for his family, but even then his PARENTS had been the ones that locked all the villains away.

And it always unsettled him, hearing about that, about what his parents did.

Some of the villains had been DEAD, yet the leaders of the kingdoms had brought some of them back to life just to suffer a fate worse than death on the Isle. How as that GOOD? How was that noble and light and everything that the heroes were supposed to stand for? How was that sort of punishment wise? The villains had already been defeated, yet they'd been brought back and forced to suffer even more? That wasn't right, it made him cringe to think of that, because even if you painted it in the best possible light, it was still necromancy and it was still a very dark sort of magic.

He couldn't comprehend why no one else saw it like that. Why was HE the only one that saw how truly despicable some of the things done to the villains was? Had the older generation been so bitter and angry and hurt by their enemies that they would forego their morals and empathy just to make the villains suffer?

And if that was true, was the new generation so apathetic and uncaring about the villains that they ignored the Isle at all?

He was the way he was because of his mother, many people said it, he inherited more from her than his father, but to hear even his mother speaking of giving the children a second chance rubbed him the wrong way.

Because it meant she already thought that the children were evil. It meant she already thought their first chance had been wasted just in being born to villains. It meant she thought that a second chance was necessary instead of seeing it as their first chance given to them.

It was a choice, it was a choice they were FINALLY offering, yet his parents seemed to think that fate had already been sealed on the children, that they HAD to be evil just for being the children of villains.

But wouldn't that be THEIR fault if the children turned out as evil as their parents?

When the villains had been shipped off, no thought had been given to contraceptives. No one had ever thought a villain would have a child. For whatever reason, that there was going to be no marriages between villains, that there was no way a villain would endure 9 months of pregnancy and then waste their time raising a child or care for a baby, that they doubted a baby would survive on the Isle because of that, he didn't know. But for whatever reason it was, no one expected there to be children. When word had reached them that a child had actually been, not just born on, but conceived on, the Isle of the Lost, it had been panic. Most had assumed the villains would just die out, that they'd go there and either kill each other in a power struggle or stick to themselves till they grew old and died.

And even THAT thought caused him to shudder, the Isle was a prison, he knew that, but just imagining what it had to be like there?

That was why he wanted to do this. Thinking about what it would be like to be raised there, just because of who his parents were, what it was like to be raised right where he was because his parents happened, by stroke of luck, to be the king and queen, made him wonder. Why should HE get the charmed life from an accident of birth while other children that had NO CHOICE at all in who their parents were were forced to endure a lifetime of misery on the Isle.

Why should CHILDREN be forced to bear the punishments of something their PARENTS had done years before they'd even been conceived?

Why should children who had done absolutely NOTHING be forced through a death sentence because of their parents?

Wasn't that, for some villains like Maleficent herself, exactly what THEY had done to the good heroes? Punished the child for the sins of the parents? How were they BETTER than villains in that regard if they continued to allow the children to suffer just because of that?

No one had thought of that, thought of it that way, and it disgusted and horrified him, especially his parents.

When word had reached them that children were being born on the Isle, NO ONE had thought to remove the children from their parents and bring them to Auradon, to be put into good and kind and loving families and given a chance to be good. No one had given a single second to think to save those innocent babies. HE hadn't been able to do anything till now. Any questions about the Isle were brushed aside, any suggestions ignored, because he was "too young to understand" at the time, but now he was king (or he would be soon) and now HE could do something.

He had never been disappointed in his parents ever, save for when he learned there were children like him on the Isle, but his parents hadn't done a thing to help them.

Oh they gave him excuse after excuse. The Villains would never let their children be taken, even if they loathed the child it was still THEIRS and they were possessive. They didn't have the resources to keep track of and hunt down every single child, yet somehow they had enough to know which villains had HAD children. There were no families willing to take in the child of their enemies. By the time he was old enough to really ask, there was also the excuse that the children were, by then, raised to be evil, and they wouldn't change.

The one he loathed more than any other was that, as rulers, they had to think of the collective, of the majority. Could they risk the safety of their people by allowing children of their greatest enemies into the land? IF they were just as rotten to the core as their parents were, it could jeopardize everyone, and they could not risk that.

It had felt, more and more as the years went by, as he subtly questioned his friends and teachers and the nobility of other kingdoms, why the children were left to suffer, that they just didn't want to think about it, that if they ignored it long enough it would just go away one day.

It felt more to him as though they didn't want to be confronted with the proof that they'd made a terrible mistake in not getting the children away when they had the chance.

For whatever reason the Villains had had children, whether it was just the gratification of the physical needs that produced a child, whether there was a scrap of love, whether it was to have some way to continue their evil legacies into the future when they were gone, no one wanted to consider the children. Because it would mean being shown either that evil could continue through the blood, in which case it was best not to let anyone off the Isle, or that evil was a choice just as good was and force people to realize they were condemning an entire generation on the prejudice that the children would choose evil instead of want to be good.

And that was just it, even his mother was subscribing to the belief that the children had already chosen evil just because of their parents, and that they should get a SECOND chance to atone for something they didn't even know if the children had done in the first place!

He just wanted to get the children off the Isle, give the a chance to make their own choices.

People assumed he would be as angry and brutish a beast as his father had been for so many years just because he was the man's son, because he was a boy. But he wasn't automatically like his father, he was more like his mother, but even then he wasn't exact to her. He had a choice in how he wanted to be or who he wanted to be, everyone did. Looking at some of his friends, they were almost opposite of their parents, because their parents raised them in ways opposite to how THEY had been raised, not wanting their children to suffer, and in so doing produced children that hardly bore resemblance to their famous parents in traits and habits and personality alone. What was to say it wasn't like that for the children on the Isle? He had had a dream once, of a purple haired girl he was sure lived on the Isle, and she had helped him when he'd been in trouble. It was what had really made him consider this proclamation, because it reminded him that people had a choice. Evil, villainous people didn't help others, and the girl had. If someone on the Isle had even a shred of goodness in them as to help him, maybe others did, maybe there was more goodness there than the adults would think. It reminded him that people weren't all good or evil, and assumptions were the worst to make, and could cause so much pain in the long run. He didn't want to start his reign off continuing a chain of pain and neglect. The Isle was a part of his kingdom, it was a prison for those that did wrong, HOW could the children have done wrong? They couldn't, they couldn't have possibly committed any of the crimes that would get them sent to the Isle, and if they had they would need a trial or _something_ first, they would need to be condemned for their crimes in the eyes of the law and the land, and they hadn't gotten that.

It had been proven, over the years, that good people could do evil crimes that got them sent to the Isle.

If people born in Auradon, the land of good, could be evil in nature, enough to go to the Isle, what was there to say that those born on the Isle, the land of evil, could be just good in nature and deserve to live HERE?

It was their choices that made them who they were, and the children on the Isle hadn't been given a choice, not in who their parents were, not in where they lived, not in anything at all.

He wanted to give that to them.

Because the children were innocent, they were not their parents, and they deserved A chance, not a second chance.

*(*)*

Author's Note-I took a bit of freedom to explore more of why Ben might be so set on the Isle of the Lost as well as an exploration to Belle's words, hope that's ok. It just struck me as so odd that Belle would talk about SECOND chances to Beast, as though the children deserved a second chance too...when they hadn't even gotten a FIRST chance. It made me feel like even Belle already saw them as being someone evil that needed to make amends for something, that they were already doomed or committed some sort of crime just being who they were. And with Ben being almost like twice the person his parents were, I could see him latching onto that, and this was just sort of my thoughts on what his thoughts would be about the situation. We'll see some of Belle's thoughts on why she might assume the children were like their parents later.

*(*)*

 **flamelily274** -We'll definitely see it play out in a few chapters their thoughts on each other and looking out for one another.

 **InspiredAndNatural** -I wouldn't have to change much, I haven't read Isle of the Lost but I've gleamed a few things from reading notes on it online and checking into things that others mentioned so I know that Ben and Mal dreamed of each other which was mentioned in this chapter. I'm glad you're enjoying the chapters, I'm very excited for the Mal/Ben chapters too.

 **sasuhina** **gal** -I've got a chapter planned for Jay and Evie yup, sort of them looking after and protecting each other.

 **thunder2010** -I'm glad you liked it!

 **UnwiseOne** -We'll definitely see Doug's thoughts on the table scene with a little of Evie too.

 **KC1991** -Oh I've GOT to do that chapter! There's so much to be said when someone admits they're actually afraid of their parents.

 **ieatbrainsyoursafe99** -I've got a chapter about the museum planned yup, I hope you'll like it when I post it!

 **JulieBug0624** -I have a little chapter planned for what gets Carlos to ask Jane to dance, a few of his thoughts on that to come.

 **Katie Emm** -I've definitely got quite a few chapters planned for the date scene, I've broken them up into a more than one chapter since there was a lot said in some very specific lines that I want to explore individually so we'll definitely see a lot of Ben's thoughts on that.


	12. My House At Dinner Time

My House At Dinner Time

"You do NOT want to be at my house at dinner time," Jay told the coach.

Trying to explain the Tourney team as a family had set him off. The man really had NO idea what "family" was like on the Isle. It was simple to explain, really, it was.

There was NO family.

Not like there was in Auradon, not like what he'd seen and overheard the other students talk about. Family didn't exist on the Isle of the Lost, not even among the four of them that had left the Isle. They had one parent, their other missing for various reasons, they had no siblings save how they'd come to think of each other, they had no support from their "family."

The coach wanted him to rely on these other guys? Wanted him to have their back? Work with them? Support them and guard them and trust them?

Ha!

If that was what family was supposed to be, the man would drop dead of shock at what "family" meant on the Isle. Family meant you served your parent, you did what you were told and got no praise at all, you fought to keep them happy and got no happiness in return, no support or praise or comfort or love or anything at all, ever. Family on the Isle, as his father loved to tell him, was all about yourself and no one else. There is no TEAM in I, there is no concern or room to care about anyone else save yourself.

His own father had drilled that into him time and again, care about yourself and only yourself. His father didn't care about him. There was no family between them. There was no family at all on the Isle, there was no sense of loyalty but fear, there was no protection but being thrown to the wolves, there was no trust, not when it came to "family."

Why would he EVER trust this team if they were meant to be a family to him? When his only experience with what was supposed to be his family involved a father that would sell off his own son if it would get him a high enough price? When the only time he felt any sense of safety and loyalty and care was from three other KIDS that had no blood relation to him, THEY were as close to a family as he could think of and the boys on the team hadn't done nearly as much (anything at all really) as Mal, Evie, and Carlos had to EARN his trust and loyalty and respect.

Family?

His house at dinner time involved fighting for food, if there was even food. His father didn't provide it, so HE had to steal it, and then eat it without his father finding out. It involved silence, it involved disapproving looks, it involved degrading comments and starvation at times. It involved nothing at all that would even begin to resemble a "family."

If he was lucky there was NO family dinner at all, which was most of the time.

Why would this man EVER think that he would want to be part of a family?

Family meant nothing on the Isle.

Friendship though, the one he had with Mal, Evie, and Carlos meant survival, meant acceptance, meant everything to him, and the boys on the team would NEVER earn what he felt for the other three even if they worked their entire lives to get it.

No, if the Tourney team was meant to be a family, he wanted nothing to do with it.

Family betrayed you.

*(*)*

Author's Note-That part, with how Jay reacted so instantly and so seriously to the coach just mentioning that the team was meant to be a family hurt. The fact that the coach had to change his definition of the team to exclude "family" said a lot about what Jay associated with the word, he clearly didn't want to be part of a "family" which made me wonder what he thought of the word in general.

On another note, wow! You guys! We've hit 100 reviews! That is amazing! Thank you all so much! I'm really glad you're all enjoying the little peeks into the silence ;)

*(*)*

 **ML143** -We'll see some of Ben's thoughts on Mal not being able to swim and how serious that is. I agree though, if Mal hadn't been able to complete the "mission" because of the drowning or near drowning their parents would be furious. I have a chapter coming where we find out, in my interpretation, why the kids are going along with the plan despite the fact that they're in Auradon now and somewhere that their parents can't get to.

 **Kifo Entiegon** -I'm glad you liked it.

 **CammieBishop** -There's a few chapters where we'll see more than just one thought or line, parts where a beginning line or end line sort of relate to each other and things like that, so far I've got quite a few chapters planned, I'm up to about 60 more to come lol.

 **UnwiseOne** -It didn't hit me the other meaning of Belle's words till like my 20th time watching, I find more and more the more I watch. I'm glad you liked the chapter. I actually haven't seen School of Secrets, I really need to watch them though.

 **obsessive360** -I'm not sure if they waited 7 years, mostly because I was under the impression that Beast was about 28 when his curse broke (when he married Belle). Like the flower would bloom till he was 21, and then it would start to slowly die and lose petals then (if it took years to bloom, why not take years to die?). I think Lumiere said they were enchanted for 10 years by the time Belle arrived, it doesn't make sense for an 11 year old to be cursed or his parents not to be there so I always thought he was older, like 18 when the curse was cast. But I agree, Belle was a little odd in the movie with her reactions to people, so I'm definitely going to look at some of her reactions and try and guess her thoughts.

 **TrueDemigodishness** -I've got a chapter planned for that line too, she seemed truly concerned for Mal which was so different from her initial reactions to her, I feel like I have to look into how she gets to that point.

 **thunder2010** -Thank you! I'm very happy you liked the chapter!


	13. Gallery Of Villains

Gallery Of Villains

Their parents were a joke.

The Isle had seen to that, that their parents lost everything that they had once valued. The Evil Queen had lost her waistline, her looks, had had to settle for her daughter. Cruella had been cut off from the dogs she obsessed over, had lost her mind and taken to talking to a stuffed one on her shoulder to make up for it. Jafar had been reduced to petty thievery just as he had once ridiculed Aladdin for and lost all his powerful genie magic. And Maleficent had lost her dragon self, her magic, as well, despite the fact she practically ruled the Isle. The barrier had made them all but powerless, magically speaking, had made them shadows of their former selves.

20 years on the Isle had been enough to drive them to mere caricatures of their former selves, laughing stocks if the people of Auradon could see them now.

And those were the people the four children of the Isle had grown up with.

Oh yes, they were terrified of their parents, they had witnessed their cruelty and evilness first hand as they grew up, they knew how dangerous their parents were. But they also knew there was something missing about them, the truly deadly part about them that made them the worst villains of the lands.

They had never, ever seen their parents at their prime, not at the height of their evilness.

Till now.

Standing there in the shadows of the Gallery of Villains in the museum, looking at the wax statues of their parents at their absolute worst (best). It was a truly shocking and startling and nightmarish sight. The Evil Queen was at her mirror, crowned, holding her poisonous apple, a deadly smirk on her face. Jafar was in a striking position, his cobra staff in hand, a sinister glare on his face. Cruella's hands were arched in claws as she sneered at the puppies she was chasing, her fur coat made of their hides billowing around her. And Maleficent, with her truly evil, dark look grinning out at them in victory with her staff held high, dressed all in black instead of purple, her horns just like the devil's.

They had never seen their parents like that, not ever, not looking so powerful and collected and pristine, so threatening. Oh they were threatening, deadly, villainous on the Isle, very much so. But not like this, not so...frightening, so much so that they almost didn't even see their _parents_ in the figures but the truly terrible villains that everyone spoke of in hushed and fearful whispers.

It hit them just then, what it would be like if they failed.

They didn't doubt that they'd be sent back to the Isle at some point. School didn't last all year, there was nowhere else for them to go when the year was over BUT back to the Isle. And if they failed to free their parents, THIS was what they'd be faced with when they returned home, when they returned back to their parents' prison. For their parents to come so close to freedom and have their children fail? They wouldn't be faced with the caricatures they'd known their entire lives, no, they'd be faced with the darkest fury, they'd be faced with the four statues before them, at the absolute worst they could be without magic. They'd be faced with the four darkest villains who had done unspeakably cruel deeds to others, to kids younger than them and their ages.

They couldn't just stand there anymore, they couldn't bear to look at their parents like that, not now that they were acutely aware of exactly what would be waiting for them when they returned to the Isle if they wasted more time, tried their patience. They had to go, they needed to find that wand and do it NOW!

If they failed, they were _dead_.

*(*)*

Author's Note-It made me wonder why the kids would actually go through with the plan to free their parents if they were finally free of them and somewhere that they couldn't be reached or punished for failing, UNLESS they thought they WOULD be going back to the Isle at the end of all this. If they truly thought that they were there as a test, or that, at the end of the school year, they'd go back to the Isle, THEN it made sense that they'd go through with the plan, because they knew they'd be facing their parents again and HAD to succeed.

Face them after failing, punishment. Face them after succeeding, safe.

If they were off the Isle, somewhere their parents couldn't hurt them for failing (or choosing not to break the barrier) then why bother even trying to? Their parents couldn't hurt them if they were staying in Auradon, which made me feel like they all genuinely believed they were going back to the Isle at some point.

I feel like it wasn't till Ben reassured Carlos that their parents couldn't get to them there that they actually realized they were NOT going back to the Isle ever again (or that Ben realized he could NOT send them back now that he knew the plan and what they'd face if they went back) and really were safe. I mean it _could_ genuinely be that they thought they'd get their parents out and all be evil together and have their parents proud of them, but this moment, seeing their reactions, it made me feel like it might be more fear of what they'd do to their kids if they failed (which was later repeated by other characters too) than wanting pride from their parents.

*(*)*

 **UnwiseOne** -I'm glad you liked it!

 **Katie Emm** -I haven't had a chance to read the book yet, sadly. I read a summary of it somewhere, but not a very detailed one so I know the gist of what happens in it but I really need to find time to go to the book store lol. I'm glad you liked the chapter!

 **DauntessFangirl** -I'm happy you're enjoying the story! I've got chapters planned for both those so we'll see them very soon.

 **Penny of Sinnoh** -I'm glad you like it! And thank you for the alert/favorite! I hope you enjoy the rest of the chapters to come!


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